Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
Nick Henn has a chameleon breeding business in the basement of his engineering business, Impact Engineering Group in Bern Township.Here is Nick with Bolt, a male Nosy Be.

Courtesy of Nick Henn |
This is the photograph of a baby hatchling panther chameleon that went viral last week.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
Diablo is a male panther chameleon originates from Nosy Be island in Madagascar. He was bred by Nick Henn at Canvas Chameleons om Bern Township. Chameleons colors correlate to regions from where they originate.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
Females panther chameleons are not as colorful as their male counterparts. This female breed is from the Nosy Be region. Chameleons colors correlate to regions from where they originate.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
This is Bolt, a male panther chameleon fron Nosy Be region. It is a breeding chameleon at Canvas Chameleons in Bern Township.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
This is Bolt, a male panther chameleon fron Nosy Be region. It is a breeding chameleon at Canvas Chameleons in Bern Township.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
This is Freeze, a male panther chameleon fron Nosy Be region. It is a breeding chameleon at Canvas Chameleons in Bern Township.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
This is a baby panther chameleon at Canvas Chameleons, a chameleon breeding business in Bern Township.

Reading Eagle: Susan L. Angstadt |
This is one of the 100 or so baby panther chameleons at Canvas Chameleons in Bern Township.

Chameleon love

Three myths about chameleons

1. They don't change color to match background. Chameleons use color change as a communication mechanism and will also change color in response to temperature, stress, predators and other things.2. Panther chameleons are not endangered, but are classified as Least Concern by The International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. Their international trade is monitored and controlled by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Under these regulations, 3,000 panther chameleons are permitted to be exported from Madagascar per year to the worldwide market.3. Wild is not better than captive-bred. Wild caught panther chameleons can be more difficult to maintain in captivity than their captive-bred counterparts. Captive breeders not only help offset pressure on wild populations, but also provide animals that tend to fare better in the care of their owners.Source: Christopher V. Anderson, Ph.D., Brown University

This is not a story of how a photo of a thumbnail-sized panther chameleon went viral.

It is a story of how that picture taken by Nick Henn, a engineer and chameleon breeder, was really months, maybe years, in the making.

It all starts with Henn, 27. He is co-owner of Impact Engineering, and recently moved his chameleon breeding business, Canvas Chameleons, to the basement of the engineering firm on Route 183 in Bern Township.

As a little boy, Henn collected reptiles but always wanted a panther chameleon, one of the most colorful and expensive. He had to set aside his hobby when he graduated from Schuylkill Valley High School in 2006 and headed off to the University of Delaware. After graduation from college, he took up his hobby again.

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At one point there were 10 chameleons in a one-bedroom apartment, said his wife and high school sweetheart, Amanda. She said she's come to love the creatures as much as Nick.

Developing expertise

It's taken Henn four years to develop the expertise to be ready to snap that picture of the hatchling still curled in an egg shape. Henn said he has 40 breeding adults, about 100 hatchlings and about 400 eggs being incubated.

It takes about 30 days after breeding for a female chameleon to lay her eggs. Then, the eggs are incubated for six to seven months. He then raises the baby chameleons to the age of three or four months before selling them. Henn said at that age they are strong enough to withstand the move to a new home.

Breeding chameleons is not cheap. Though he didn't want to disclose the overall costs, Henn listed some of his expenses.

Henn buys about 20,000 crickets every two weeks to feed his chameleons. Depending on the size of cricket, it can cost $200 to $300 per order. Each year he replaces the special lights over each cage at cost of $20 per light. Last year he sold about 150 chameleons for between $200 to $300 each. His business almost broken even last year. But now he has insurance and security costs as well as the expenses associated with the automated light, temperature and sprinkling system.

Chameleons don't drink out of bowls, by the way. They prefer to sip water off leaves as they might in the wild.

Ready to 'pip'

He had been watching the egg in question, as he often does while they are incubating. He watches the eggs to see when they are ready to "pip," in other words, to break a tiny hole that the hatchling can push its way through.

The egg will start to sweat, or get little water bubbles on it, Henn said. The egg will actually start to shrink and a small crack will appear.

When the egg in question didn't pip, Henn decided to help the hatchling.

"It's not that common," Henn said. "For the most part, they hatch on their own. Once in a while, one or two are a little weaker."

If an egg pips on the side for some reason, it can be difficult for the hatchling to push out, because their head isn't near the hole, Henn said.

"I've actually had them push out other parts of their bodies, like their yolk sac," he said. That hatchling didn't survive.

And so a star was born. Henn put the photo on Instagram and Facebook to share with potential customers and fellow reptile lovers. Then, the sharing began.

Henn was surprised.

Henn thought another picture he took would have gone viral. It was of the first jeweled chameleon born in captivity: a big deal in the chameleon and reptile community, but apparently not the rest of the world.

Henn is known for his chameleons. National Geographic TV recently came to Berks to shoot footage of the reptiles for a documentary.

Whether the viral picture is a business changer for Henn remains to be seen. He said he can meet increased demand for chameleons. He hopes to break even this year: that is, have his sales fully fund his expenses.

Growing in popularity

Chameleons are growing in popularity.

"Owing to their relatively large size and the remarkable array of colors seen in males, the panther chameleon is one of the most popular species for people to keep and breed in captivity," said Christopher V. Anderson, Ph.D., a Brown University professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. "Among the 202 species of chameleon, only the veiled chameleon is kept and bred more widely. Panther chameleons make impressive display animals for dedicated keepers but, as with other chameleon species, they have very specific requirements that must be carefully and consistently provided for in order for them to flourish."

Anderson said that for more than 20 years, panther chameleons have consistently been a species that people are interested in breeding.

With the increase in web-based businesses, online communities and social media, however, it has become easier for people to learn about these animals and gain access to a diversity of bloodlines and lineages, Anderson said.

"As a result, breeders that were once restricted to relatively small local markets can now sell to a much wider audience," Anderson said. "This has increased the number of people interested in keeping and breeding them."

Contact Lisa Scheid: 610-371-5049 or lscheid@readingeagle.com.

Three myths about chameleons

1. They don't change color to match background. Chameleons use color change as a communication mechanism and will also change color in response to temperature, stress, predators and other things.2. Panther chameleons are not endangered, but are classified as Least Concern by The International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. Their international trade is monitored and controlled by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Under these regulations, 3,000 panther chameleons are permitted to be exported from Madagascar per year to the worldwide market.3. Wild is not better than captive-bred. Wild caught panther chameleons can be more difficult to maintain in captivity than their captive-bred counterparts. Captive breeders not only help offset pressure on wild populations, but also provide animals that tend to fare better in the care of their owners.Source: Christopher V. Anderson, Ph.D., Brown University